Turkey and Greece to discuss migrant deal as influx continues

Officials from Turkey and Greece will meet on Monday to discuss the implementation of last Friday’s agreement between the EU and Ankara to reduce the migrant flow to Europe, according to reports.

Under the deal, which went into effect Sunday, migrants arriving on the Greek islands from Turkey will now be sent back if they do not apply for asylum or if their claim is rejected.

“[The deal] is in force. Its practical implementation remains to be seen,” Greek government migration spokesman Giorgos Kyritsis told AP.

Questions remain over some points, such as how migrants will be sent back or what will happen to those who are stuck in Greece since Macedonia closed its border, sealing off the Balkan route to Austria and Germany. Officials have said the returns to Turkey are unlikely to start before April 4, the BBC reports.

On the island of Lesbos, Greek police said some 800 migrants had arrived from Turkey by Sunday midday.

At least 144,000 people, mostly Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans, have arrived in Greece so far in 2016, according to UN data. More than half of those people entered the EU by landing on Lesbos. Throughout March, an average of 1,100 people have been reaching the Greek shores every day.

Border closures along the Western Balkan route caused a bottleneck with 47,000 people being stranded in Greece unable to continue their journey to Western Europe.

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Krister Hakansson

Is this the beginning of the end of EU? Another detail is the 70000 Syrian refugees EU promised to receive from Turkey, one for every Syrian who is transported back from Greece. The EU countries failed to implement a similar agreement a few months ago, because the countries either did not want any refugees or, like Sweden, thought they had already taken their share. An inhuman, unrealistic and irresponsible agreement that looks like the result of “group think”, a social psychology phenomenon when leaders are strongly pushing for a decision and everybody thinks it has to be OK because no one objects. Diffuse collective responsibility is a condition that is clearly present also in this case. This will hopefully also be the end of many national governments when citizens observe the disastrous consequences of this agreement and punish the guilty parties in the next election.